Unconvential Corporeal
by WishfullyThinking
Summary: Tracy Richardson is back in a new story that involves one thing she hates: Robots. If you believe a train wreck and having to kill a friend couldn't be worse than anything else, guess again. Having to fight for you life and identity is hell. Sequel to Newest Recruit. Check on my profile to vote for Tracy's love interest. Rating subject to change, maybe. 10th Class
1. The Sun Beat Down Like an Angry Woman

**Hey you guys. I decided to reboot this piece of junk.**

**Remember, there's a poll on my page for you to vote who you want Tracy to end up with.**

**Thanks!**

* * *

Dust clouded her throat, causing her to wince, coughing rather loudly. Her throat burned with dryness as she began to roll over, finding herself to be cramped in whatever space she had managed to crawl into before they crashed. Opening her eyes, her eyes met with the leather seat of the train car. Gritting her teeth, she braced her feet against the seat and began to push herself from under it. It seemed she was alone— wait, no. She could hear the wheezing breath of someone nearby. Finally wriggling from the seat perched above her, she got to her feet. Sand scrunched under her feet, pieces of boxes and other debris scattered across the damaged car. Finally, Tracy reaches the light at the end and catches sight of a battered and stained lab coat. Kneeling down, she met the injured and quite awake Medic with a wry smile.

"That's the last time I take a train to battle." She snorts as she helps the Medic into a sitting position. The man scoffs and winces, holding his injured arm close to him.

"You and me both, Thief." The BLU Medic grits his teeth, and by the prodding of the Thief, stretches out his injured arm. She grabs a few nearby pieces of debris and rips a long piece from the stomach of her shirt and fashions and splint with the Medic's guidance. With another rip from the Medic's own shirt, she creates a sling, and eventually helps the German to his feet. He leans heavily on her, but she manages to help him from the car. The harsh light of the sun greets them, sending a wave of heat over them. The Thief's tongue hangs from her mouth as she prays for water.

Tracy sets the doctor down a moment near a few cacti to backtrack back to the car to rummage for supplies. Not many are to be found. A small medical kit, a bottle of water and a couple packs of crackers are all she finds, and a few jackets left behind by unwilling by her team.

She returns to the Medic, spreading the jackets over the cacti to create a bit of shade. The German takes off his glasses (surprisingly unbroken by the crash) and wipes the sweat from his brow. Tracy spreads their supplies out in the sand, gesturing to them without much care.

"So, we're stuck out in the desert with a four or five day walk ahead of us." The Medic calculates bitterly, reaching for one of the bottles. Tracy doesn't argue in letting him have a gulp, and quickly takes one herself when offered. "And without and medical supplies for this arm, and the few injuries I got on board…"

"Let's not think about that at the moment." The Thief waves those worries away for the time being, adjusting herself under the shade. Sweat travels down the middle of her back and her thighs, her face red from exertion and the heat. "What exactly happened out there, though?"

The Medic sighs, sticking his spectacles back onto his nose. "I believe the opposing team attacked us. I cannot be sure but I believe it was a Spy. As soon as it began I ran back to the last train cart to gather my belongings when I bumped into you. They must have disengaged the lock on the car and caused it to crash."

"Hm." Tracy mumbles, mulling this over.

The Medic looks her over, raising a brow. "You do not seem as worried as I would have guessed. Does death not alarm you anymore?"

"Not anymore, no." The Thief frowns, crossing her arms as if cold. Her boots grind into the sand as if frustrated. A lizard skitters past.

The German sighs, "How disappointing. And I was looking forward to frightening you."

Tracy scowls at him, but her anger soon diminishes as the Medic smiles at her. They settle down as the sun begins to be chased away by the dark, a chill going through the air. Tracy spreads a few more jackets out as bedding, and a larger one that was obviously the Heavy's at one point as a blanket. The two huddle together for warmth rather than companionship, but even so the Medic takes Tracy's offered-unoffered hand for security.

* * *

The third day of their trek greets them like a bad but unavoidable neighbor. Death is not a stranger to these two teammates, but yet a chill goes through them as they discover the infection growing inside the Medic's injured arm. Without antibiotics and with the last of the water sucked up by the two, they begin to trek without water and the barest minimum of clothing during the sunny hours.

As they day goes by, their urine begins turning brown, and soon they can barely stay on their feet. They soon reach a cave probably once inhabited by wolves but now empty for their use. They collapse to the stone floor, the Thief making her way on her hands and feet to spread out their coat bedding. With effort, she rolls the dehydrating and sick Medic onto the bedding, covering him with the large coat. She watches outside for anything she could chase down with a hunting knife, yet finds nothing.

When she returns, she is surprised by the sight of the Medic leaning against the wall. He is pale and sweating, his eyes glazed and far away as he looks at her. She frowns, and despite the chill she sidles up next to him to share in his warmth as the sun leaves the sky. For a long time, they are silent; the only noise heard is their breathing.

When the cave finally gets dark and the Thief lights a few dry branches with a match does the Medic speak. He is still very sick and probably hallucinating due to the lack of water and his infection, but he still speaks as if he is entirely in control of his faculties. He turns, his cold blue eyes locking with her hazel ones. "You're going to have to kill me."

Tracy doesn't make a noise nor reveals her emotions to these words. She had to have known that at least one of the two of them would die out here, and she wasn't the one with injuries. "That isn't going to necessarily help the water situation."

"You'd be surprised." The Medic says with a sigh and he pulls the jacket off of him, groaning as he attempts to stand. She stands herself, her head swimming from the effort, and offers to help him. He bats away her hands, leaning heavily on the cave wall as he shuffles towards the entrance. Without much thought, the Thief takes her hunting knife outside with her.

"So, somehow killing you will help my dehydration?" She brings up casually, as if talking about the weather. The Medic doesn't seem bothered by her tone of voice nor the idea of killing him. He did bring it up, anyways. He nods, practically falling into the sand as he sits down on a dune. She joins him, her feet bare and digging into the sand.

"Yes." The German says, looking towards the stars. A violent shiver goes through Tracy as she watches him, crossing her arms. The hunting knife lays in the sand beside her in full view, but the Medic does not reach for it. "Have you ever heard of blood siphoning?"

"No, but please, illuminate me." The Thief replies sarcastically, leaning against his bare arm for warmth.

The Medic shifts slightly to allow her closer, for their warmth to be shared. He does not shiver, but it is most likely from the fever. His skin radiates heat, which would have worried her if he wasn't speaking about killing himself.

"Blood siphoning is where one person gives their blood for another to drink. Blood is mostly plasma, and plasma is ninety percent water." The Medic explains. "That's why I am offering myself to you. The fact is, this infection will most likely kill me before dehydration, and I would rather you not get sick when you drink from me."

"That's quite an offer." Tracy nods, but bites her lip self-consciously. Despite the casual front she puts up about death, she's never had to kill a teammate before. And she rather liked the Medic.

"Indeed." He nods, "I'd rather be killed by my teammate rather than some infection, if you wouldn't mind."

"I don't suppose you have any last wishes, Medic?" The Thief turns towards him.

The Medic pauses, turning to her with a rather weary look in his eye. He sighs before smiling at her, like a man would a friend. "Please, call me Fritz."

Tracy stares at him a moment, her mouth slightly agape before she shuts it. Not many people offered their names in this business. They usually went by their classes, as to not get entirely close to their comrades. But in this instance, instead of shock, she began to smile.

"Of course Fritz." She nods. "Close your eyes."

* * *

The sun reflects light off the metal of the train tracks. Dark, almost black blood droplets hit the hot metal, hissing and bubbling almost immediately. She walks beside the tracks hopping on and off the wood of the tracks as she licks her lips, blood staining her blue once t-shirt now belly tank-top. Her high-waist trousers are now stained with the sand of the desert, and the blood from kneeling too close to the body once belonging to the faithful doctor.

She had piled stones atop his body once she was finished with it. She did not wish for coyotes or wolves to get to him, piling any stone she could to protect it. She promised herself that, once she found the base she would get a car and bury him the proper way, but this was all she could do at the moment. The sun bared it's teeth at her, burning her neck and shoulders, burying itself deep into her flesh. Blood dried and stained her fingers and nails and down her neck. She didn't fret about it but kept moving, despite the watery impressions to the left and right of her, which were most likely mirages.

She knew she was close when she began to see trash littered about. She surmised one more day, just one more day out in the desert. She took a rag that was still damp and heavy with blood and sucked on it, wetting her tongue with the slightly congealed blood.

The night was cold and harsh with only one jacket, having wrapped the Medic's body with most of them to keep away scorpions and other bugs from digging into his flesh. She shivered throughout the night, getting a few hour sleep in-between. When the sun finally showed its face, she got to her feet and began the trek once more. She sucked on whatever was left of the blood on the rag, which was nothing, and soon abandoned the scrap of fabric. Her head swam with random thoughts as dehydration once again began to take over. It wasn't long until she could see the wooden building of Coal Town ahead.

What she knew of the place was vague. She knew it once held miners; a small town of Mann Co.'s that had dried up when other resources were found for fuel. Now it was kept as a historical monument to Mann Co.'s success. Well, now it was used as a battle ground for RED and BLU, but she supposed a few scorch marks and bullet holes couldn't do too much damage to the place. She hoped it had running water.

But as she approached one of the wooden buildings, she noted it was rather quiet. Wouldn't it have been one of the match days today? Tracy stumbled and practically fell over when she noted a rather oddly shaped piece of metal sticking out of the ground. Leaning down to inspect it, she pulled it out to reveal and metal arm. It was unlike the Engineer's metal hand in which he used for construction of his contraptions. This thing was a full arm, and made with finesse as far as she could tell. Most likely manufactured by a company as it didn't have the Engineer's home-made style.

She threw the arm to the ground and decided to hesitantly investigate. Finding a latter nearby, she climbed it quietly to the roof of a building, finding a Sniper camped out nearby. What stopped her from greeting the Sniper was the fact he was made entirely out of metal and in what appeared to be BLU garb. As she tried to sneak up behind in, a panel of wood creaked under her heel and alerted the Sniper of her presence. It whipped around, growling out something with a metallic voice before trying to hit her with the butt of its rifle. She dodges the blow narrowly, grabbing the gun and kicking the butt back at its jaw. It fell back with a metallic clang before Tracy climbed atop it and beat it down until she couldn't hear its gears clicking anymore. Peering through the scope of the rifle, she catches sight of the RED Team huddled up near their base, where most of the battle seems to be happening. This explains why she couldn't hear it earlier.

Relaxing her grip, she fires off a round from the rifle, taking out a metal Soldier that had been going after what appears to be a bomb. This surprised the REDs who attempt to find their helper, but are distracted by a wave of metal Scouts. The Thief herself couldn't think of a reason why she was helping them, other than the fact that she didn't like robots.

Finally, it appeared that the robots had trickled down to a few strays that randomly popped up here and there. Tracy helped take out a few, including a robot Spy, before they finally stopped. Dropping the rifle, she climbed down the ladder once more to approach the REDs in hope they wouldn't kill her.

Her feet kick the sand as she nears their base. A few REDs ready their weapons, calling to others to get ready themselves. She holds up her hands in the universal "I don't have weapons" sign. As a RED Engineer disentangles himself from the crowd of his teammates to approach her, Tracy's head swims a bit too hard and she feels herself slipping…

* * *

**To be continued.**


	2. Old Faces Come Back

**I realize that there are grammatical errors and such that plague my pages, but please understand I have a time limit in which I must abide to write and it doesn't give me much room for reading over said pages. I'll try to go back and fix my errors, but if you could please bring these errors to light for me, that would be greatly appreciated. The fact that I have no patience for betas may have something to do with it. xD**

**Oh, let's just get down to Tracy and the gang. Who cares about the author's notes!**

* * *

The darkness was greatly welcomed, and the absence of sweat surprised her. Heat was no longer plaguing her arms and legs and back, instead a cooling air washed over her, causing a slight chill. Tracy attempts to get up, to move, but finds herself either strapped down or her body refusing her commands. Not that she could necessarily blame it. She had put it through such agony these past four or five days, and having even an hour of rest would cause an immediate shutdown. Not that she was complaining, the cool air on her forehead and neck felt amazing. Despite her lazy state, she opened her eyes to the dim room, hearing explosions off in the distance.

What greeted her was the sight of the RED Engineer sitting beside her, goggles on a nearby wooden crate, his hardhat set up near the seat as if he had been holding it but had slipped his fingers as he drifted off. His eyes were closed, his arms resting loosely on his lap, his head slightly tilted away towards the open door. Slowly the Thief sat up, the crates she laid upon creaking. The room was quiet besides the cries of pain and gunshots in the distance. There was an oil lamp sitting nearby and a bottle of water. Quickly, she grabbed the bottle and gulped it down, her fingers a bit slower than her brain wanting it to be. After she drank her fill, she set the bottle back down on the crate and began to look around the room, wondering if the Engineer was her captor. The Engineer seemed to be without weapons, except for the wrench in his utility belt. The room was filled with crates, many layered with dust that had accumulated over the years of disuse. Others had imprints of where people had sat to rest, dark stains on the floor implying either blood or water was spilt. The room was small and rather shaped like a fat L with no visible light switches. It seemed the oil lantern was the only source of available light.

Rolling over, Tracy fiddled with the oil lantern's keys until a dim light began to fill the room. The oil lantern seemed to be in need of oil or perhaps relighting, but as long as there was a little light Tracy was comfortable. The Engineer nearby fidgeted in his sleep, and slowly began coming back to the living as the light began to become brighter. Locking eyes with the Thief, the Engineer smiled calmly and crossed his arms, "Nice to see you didn't die in your sleep."

"Same to you." She smirked, running a hand through her greasy, short, sandy-blonde hair.

The Engineer made a show of rolling his eyes before adjusting himself in his seat, picking up his hard hat to plop it onto his head. He left the goggles untouched, however, perhaps out of need to see clearly in the dim room. "We were all kinda wondering how you managed to crawl your way out of the desert alive. Your team told us that the back car of your train was detached and crashed."

"I'd like to know why exactly the train was attacked in the first place." The Thief's mood immediately plummeted when the train was mentioned, the body of the Medic popping into mind. "I could give you horror stories of what I had to do back there to survive, but first I'd like an explanation."

The Engineer appeared mildly surprised but said nothing of her 'horror stories' and began to explain. "Well, I'll tell yah it wasn't us for starters. Our train was being attacked at about the same time your's was. We thought it was probably your team, but seeing as how those shiny suckers weren't flesh and blood like you we pretty much understood what was happening. It was around yesterday after the first few waves of machines hit when the Announcer finally dropped us a line and filled us in herself."

"Yeah, I saw one of them up-close. They're robots, right?" Tracy shrugs her aching shoulders as she speaks, her sun-burnt shoulders trembling with pain as they make contact with the fabric of her shirt. "They seem too... mass-produced to be man-made."

"Yer' pretty much right." The Engineer nods, slumping down slightly in his seat. "These suckers are the brainchild of the long lost brother of the Manns, Blutarch and Redmond. Oh, did I forget to mention he killed them both?"

The Thief's eyes widen, "Wait wait wait, you mean to tell me the guy that's suppose to be payin' us is dead? Both RED and BLU's payroll is being cut?"

"Well, Mann Co. is still running as far as we know..." The RED Engineer rubs the back of his head as he speaks, unsure of the information he has himself. "The man who killed our bosses is the long lost brother of the two, Grey Mann. Anyways, I guess he got jealous or something, killed them both, and decided he wanted Mann Co. too since he believes it's his birthright. All we know is that we're under Mann Co.'s pay now and it's our job to hold this front until we're either all killed, we win, or somehow we're all fired."

"Why don't we just leave now?" Tracy cocks a brow, hazel eyes twinkling with a mixture of confusion and amusement.

The Engineer shrugs, "Would you pass up pay this good? At any case the robots we're fightin' run, get this, money, so fightin' em seems to be just a plus."

"This seems ridiculous." The Thief replies flatly before taking another drink from the water bottle, wetting her lips.

"You bet it is." The RED smirks, "But as far as I can see this ain't gonna last too long. We've been hearing from other sides that there's teams bein' beat down, and it's likely we'll have to move soon."

"Fantastic." Tracy replies, pushing herself from the cot to stand. The Engineer stands as well, helping her from the bed. "Is the Respawn system still active?"

"It's been workin' round the clock for a few days now. In fact, your BLU Medic arrived yesterday." The Texan smiles as he watches the awed look on her face split into a smile. "He was a mite worried 'bout you, but calmed down when he found you alive and well."

"I'm gonna have to have a word with that man." Tracy snorts, but her happiness permeates the air. "Scarin' me into thinking he'll never show his face again."

"He's out and about for the moment, helping the team with the machines." The Engineer replies, leading her from the room to a main area that leads off to separate rooms. They seem to be supply stations, where a few teammates spawn nearby to fill back up. Tracy herself catches sight of the RED Thief gathering supplies at the area, locking eyes with her for a moment, before speeding off through the door. Tracy winces and grits her teeth but doesn't mention her irritation with the sight of the RED.

"Here you are." The Engineer helps her past a roped off area which harbors a small, pitiful looking bathroom. It seems that water had been filled in it manually, with the stopper at the drain having been stuck in and tin buckets littering the floor. A small, dingy mirror reflects the Thief's poor appearance, making the girl groan. Most of the blood that had littered her face and neck had been cleaned off, but blood still stained her clothes and her hair was still a greasy mess. Her shoulders and parts of her face were red from sun-burn, and other parts of her skin were a tan brown from exposure. The Engineer helps her onto the wooden seat of the toilet before mentioning he'll be nearby if she needs help. She thanks him before he leaves and begins to strip stiffly, her bones protesting the stretch of pulling her shirt off. When she's finally naked she kicks the rags that were once clothes away and decides to burn them before turning to test the water.

The water's about room temperature due to the possibility that it had been sitting here for awhile. Tracy hopes she's the first one to be using this water, but decides that pre-used bath water was probably better than nothing to get her clean. She slips into the tub with a few splashes, dunking her head underwater and scrubbing her body and hair with ages old lye soap, ridding herself of the blood and sweat that dried across her skin. Within a few minutes she's clean, but she takes a few minutes to relax in the water, allowing her muscles to uncurl. For a minute or two it feels as if she's drifting into sleep, but she's soon to snap awake by the sound of footsteps.

From the door appears a Medic dressed in RED garb, however she recognizes his expressions and his stance as he walks, and immediately smiles. He smiles back, however contains himself and sets a change of clothes on the wooden toilet seat before leaning down beside the tub to pat the Thief's damp hair. "It's good to see you, mein freund."

"You too." The Kansas woman replies before narrowing her brows slightly, "I'm not forgiving you for freaking me out in that cave though."

The German rolls his eyes before smiling wider, realizing she was simply being playfully mad. "I realized we couldn't be too far from the town and the fact that I was slowing you down was simply too much for my fever-addled mind to handle. Sacrificing myself seemed the most logical option at the time. I apologize for worrying you, if it makes any difference."

"I accept your apology." Tracy smiles back a bit wider before having the Medic help her from the tub and dry her off. She doesn't much notice this action is a bit intimate, but this man was a doctor, and to be quite honest her closest friend. And he seemed not to mind helping her. After she finally pulls on her usual uniform, albeit RED, she's allowed to hobble out into one of the supply rooms to speak with the Medic.

"So, we're apart of the RED Team now, eh?" The Thief asks, not disguising the lack of enthusiasm in her voice.

The Medic nods with a rather empathetic look in his eye, scratching the side of his jaw as he leans against the wall with her. "Believe me, I am not entirely happy with the change myself, but the RED Engineer's targeting system seems only able to take a target team and an ally team into it's system, and has no room for a neutral team. At least, that's what he tells me. The fact is as well that we are not getting our usual supply drops. Mann Co. is simply being stretched to it's limits as it tries to cover all territory it can reach. Sharing clothes seems to be the norm now."

"Fantastic." Tracy rolls her eyes, "But I suppose I can deal with it for the moment. But what exactly are we gonna do after all this ends anyways? Our bosses are dead."

"Not exactly..." The Medic mumbles, but their conversation is cut short as a Scout runs in asking for help. The Medic joins the Scout, leaving the once BLU now RED Thief alone with her thoughts.

She may be RED now, but she's BLU underneath.

Call it crazy loyalty.

* * *

**I'm gonna try to follow canon as best I can, which means the comics. I will have my own spin on things and this will have multiple Soldier and Scout characters, but they'll be labelled from Tracy's viewpoint. **

**To be continued...**


	3. The Grey on Us

**Okay, this chapter might be a little bad because I was so scatter-brained when I typed it. Hopefully it's not too bad.**

* * *

Their quarters were pretty cramped, considering their surroundings. There was only one base, if you could call it that, that they could use. They had set up something akin to bunks, using foam pads and setting them atop crates and spreading bed sheets atop them. They weren't necessarily comfortable; some cots didn't have blankets or pillows, or neither of the two. Tracy was given a blanket but had given her pillows to the Scout she had found was a BLU as well. The Thief found the whole mixing of the teams confusing as hell, and quite an inconvenience when she'd go talk to the RED Engineer to find out he was really the BLU. She made a note to later mark her teammates with a marker later so she could tell the difference.

The BLU (wearing RED garb) Sniper was the first to take watch with his binoculars and piss jar at the ready, his rifle sitting nearby. The others would be taking watch as well, including the RED Engineer and Spy. The BLU Thief was to be resting after staying out so long in the desert, but she had insisted she should battle tomorrow. Nobody had any objections, save the BLU Medic, and Tracy was signed up for tomorrow. The RED Thief had refused to be replaced for tomorrow, though, so the BLU Scout was put on rest.

As night began to fall, cool wind began to pick up and throw sand everywhere. The team (excluding the watching Sniper) was pulled back inside and the doors were shut for the night. They ate from their meager supplies (pork stew and bread), the group dying down as drowsiness began to set in. Tracy was no exception, considering her walking for the previous twenty-four hours, however she was kept up by her thoughts.

Leaping from her cot as quietly as she could manage, she rummaged around the room in the dim light of the lamp that illuminated the room. The Demoman snored nearby, startling the Thief but she managed not to make any noise. Amazingly, Tracy was able to find a piece of paper and a pencil. She could make an envelope out of another piece, but for now she was simply going to write a letter to her mother.

_Hey Mom,_

_Sorry I haven't written in a while. I've been very, very busy with the kids. My group and I were going across the county to meet up with a team to go against, (y'know, the scholarship thing?) but our bus broke down half-way through the drive. We're all okay; we had plenty of water and food that could be sacrificed, although I still feel a bit weak. I'm fit enough to play in the games though, so I'll be up and at 'em tomorrow._

_Looks like we're up against a different team than we originally thought. They're called The Machines, and to be honest they're a little intimidating. I'm sure they're not going to be better than us, but y'know, you gotta be careful about these things. They might play pranks on us in the middle of the night or something…_

_You don't have to worry though. We'll be fine, I promise. If they beat us, we'll beat them right back! The allowance they give us around here is kinda decreasing, but being out in the desert isn't the most comfortable thing ever. We got beds and stuff, so we're okay. We're hold up in some sort of old western-style coal town that's been abandoned for a while. It's cool once you get used to the lack of running water and dust everywhere, but it's livable. _

_It's pretty late right now, and I should go to bed to be well-rested for tomorrow's game, but I'm just sorta restless at the moment. That's mostly why I'm writing you. And I miss you, don't forget that! Again, if you need ANYTHING, just ask me. I still have plenty of money from my old job and I have no qualms with sharing. _

_Do you mind sending us some brownies or something? The food isn't fantastic here, so something sweet would definitely cheer us up. But nothing that would spoil, hopefully. It's really hot over here._

_Alright, if I keep on writing I'll only start to ramble on and on about my problems, so I'll just end it right here._

_Love,_

_Tracy_

Setting her pencil down, the Thief read over the paper before setting it down near a crate where she hoped it wouldn't be ruined. The night was so very quiet, with the brief howling of coyotes in the distance and the skittering of reptiles in the sand. Tracy sighed and curled up in her cot, using half her blanket as a pillow and the rest as what it's supposed to be used as. It wasn't as chilly in here; the entire team's body heat keeping the building warm. Tracy caught the sound of Heavy's breathing, the gentle snores of the Demoman nearby. Tracy's eyes slowly closed…

* * *

The surrounded her, the pale hands, long fingers.

They danced over her body, touching her back and her stomach, pinching her head between their fingers to keep her still as she kicked and screamed.

The air was dry and hot, burning her throat as she tried to breath in.

She gasped for breath, and without warning blood began to drip from her mouth, cascading over her lips and down her neck, splattering onto her chest and legs.

She shrieked, anger and panic combined, wrestling with the pale fingers.

Finally they let her go and disappeared into the darkness, leaving her to fall away from the light above…

* * *

"Hey, wake up."

Tracy jerked awake, her shoulder being roughly shaken as what appeared to be Tracy herself waking her. The sight of the RED Thief without her uniform was disorienting and slightly irritating, but Tracy was too shocked by her dream to come up with a crude remark. As soon as the RED believed she was awake, she left to go get breakfast. Or that's what Tracy assumed.

As Tracy began to get to her feet, she realized she had slept in. Only the BLU Scout seemed to be asleep and rather boyishly so, his shirt riding up onto his ribs, one hand tucked into his pants. Tracy rolled her eyes and threw her blanket onto the boy before getting dressed into her uniform, wincing as the RED Thief's perfume clouded her nose. It didn't necessarily smell bad… but she didn't like it.

She then made her way to the makeshift dining room. It was extremely cramped and without chairs and few tables where supplies rested on. Many sat on crates as they ate what looked like hardtack and slices of baloney. Coffee was also served, which the mercenaries dunked their hardtack in to soften it up. Tracy grabbed a plate herself, wrinkling her nose at the food but she ate it anyways. She placed herself next to who she thought was the RED Soldier, and briefly realized it was the BLU Soldier.

"Are they trying to poison us or what?" The BLU mumbled as she dunked the hardtack into her coffee before attentively taking a bite. It softened the biscuit and gave it some flavor, but was otherwise incredibly bitter. She swallowed the bite despite the flavor and took a nibble of her baloney.

The Soldier shrugged his shoulders, taking a bite of the hardtack as if it were a simple piece of bread. "It has what we need to battle. Nutrients and… calories." The Soldier seemed to be grasping for something intelligent to say, quickly taking a drink of his coffee.

"I suppose…" Tracy's mind went back to her letter as she turned towards the Soldier, "Do you have anyone you write home to? Maybe you could ask them to send us something edible?"

The All-American man hummed as he thought, "I did have this room-mate once, but he's not living with me anymore… uhm…"

"It's alright." Tracy quickly amended before he needed to start stumbling for words. "I'm gonna send a letter to my mom, she'll probably send something."

The men around her quickly whipped around and stared at her. The Thief bristled with this sudden attention, appearing a little bashful, "Uh, what?"

"We, just, ah…" The RED (BLU) Engineer rubbed the back of his head with his human hand, "We don't get many supplies out here from home."

The RED Spy replied, "Many of us do not have family. I only get things from…"

"DO NOT mention my mother." The RED (BLU) Scout grumbled as he stumbled into the room, appearing to be a mess in his bedclothes. The RED Spy snorted in amusement but didn't say anything.

"Well, I asked her to send brownies… maybe I'll add a P.S. to send anything that won't spoil that'll fit in a box…" Tracy rubbed her chin in thought. The mercenaries whooped like children who just received a treat. Tracy shrugged her shoulders and understood they probably didn't get many goodies if they didn't have many friends or family.

"What's yer ma's name?" The RED Scout asked, cross legged on a crate, "Scout's Honor I won't hit on her."

The Thief gave the boy a stern look before relenting. "Her name's Alice Richardson. She's a blonde with hazel eyes and has a little scar right here." She gestures with her finger the bridge of her nose to her right nostril. "I take most of my looks after my dad, so I can't say we look much alike. She's into advertising and stuff."

"Sounds pretty." The RED Scout said thoughtfully with a mouthful of baloney.

The Thief gave him a look before continuing. "Anyways… I'll send her a letter after this match. By the way, anyone wanna tell me what I'm getting myself into?"

The RED (BLU) Soldier raised his hand almost immediately. Tracy hoped he wouldn't be too complicated with his explanation.

"The Machines are going to come at us from the north. They're main target is to destroy a power system underneath us in this vault sitting outside. If they manage to destroy the power system, it will explode causing anyone in the vicinity to die a fiery death." The Soldier explained rather simply. "There are waves of Scoutbots, Soldiers, and other classes that will attack us without mercy, so we must be at the ready."

"Yeesh." The Thief winces at the thought of such a battle. Tracy wasn't so sure she was going to be an asset in this mission. "Well, as long as the respawn system works, we should be alright."

"Luckily, despite the lack of supplies, we do have upgrade stations where we may improve our weapons and ourselves." The BLU Medic decided to pop into the conversation, much to the annoyance of the Soldier. "Mostly speed and capacity and damage upgrades and such, although there are upgrades to the body that may be taken, such as adrenaline shots for speed and pain killers to resist damage."

"Sounds cool, although really unhealthy." The Kansas woman nods appreciatively before adjusting her mask upon her face.

"I would say so…" The Medic replies before a blaring alarm begins screaming in the building. Mugs of coffee and plates of breakfast are abandoned as the team begins to stream into the respawn areas. Tracy quickly stuffs her face with the last of the baloney before rushing after them to claim her weapons, the BLU Scout waving her goodbye. Pistol in her waistband (for the lack of holsters) and shotgun in hand, she stuffs her screwdriver and smoke bombs into her pockets. Classes crowd around the upgrade stations like puppies to the kibble, so she has to wait a few minutes before there's an open space.

To her displeasure she finds that all of the upgrades she sees cost money, but luckily they take credit and cash. Inputting her number, she begins to upgrade her shotgun with better damage and more capacity, taking a few adrenaline shots and painkillers to bring along. Her screwdriver is now lighter but stronger in order to quickly strike out at an enemy, and her smoke bombs are now swapped out for those that last much longer and have a denser smoke.

Popping outside, she finds the Engineers getting to work on their machines. Multiple Sentries are set up near the north and near the vault in order to cover all points, dispensers set up around passageways to quickly get the items they need. The Demomen shoot sticky bombs around the area they believe the robots will be entering, while the Heavies ready their miniguns. The Medics waste no time building up their ÜberCharge, shouting positives to their men. Mercenaries begin shouting their affirmatives and readies, Tracy being on the few last. The Thief would be surprised any robot would get past them, seeing the firepower that's about to be unleashed upon them. Tracy shivers in delight, climbing halfway to the Sniper's nest to get a good look at the horizon.

What she sees startles her—a huge grey armada-like contraption that sits a few miles ahead, gates open revealing what appears to be a respawn system of its own, but considerably more of an assembly-line like order. Machines twitch and spasm as they stand to attention, as if held back by an unseen force. Chills run down her arms and spine despite the warm air. What seems to be thousands fill the armada, and now Tracy realizes what they're up against.

**"****THIS IS IT," **The Administrator's voice booms through the area. **"****DO NOT FAIL ME.****"**

The Machines were upon them.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed it! To be continued...**


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